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Jan 20 2022 
Music funding opportunities for January
January Funding Opportunities
At Take it away, we believe that music needs backing. For any music creator, knowing where and how to look for financial support for your projects is invaluable.
We update this page regularly with the latest opportunities and deadlines for creative grants that will help you on your musical journey.
Here’s what caught our eye recently (last updated January 2022)
Help Musicians announce £1m hardship fund
Unfortunately, we enter this new year with many musicians struggling to make ends meet due to Covid disruption.
Help Musicians will be making further payments to musicians facing financial hardship, with applications for support opening on 31 January 2022.
This new round will see a one-off payment of at least £250 made to those eligible, with higher amounts available to those in the most challenging financial conditions if we have sufficient funds.
Time to Power Up
Power UP is a new programme which will power up Black music creators & industry professionals, and will tackle anti-Black racism & racial disparities in the UK music industry. If you’re an exceptional UK-based Black music creator or industry professional ready to power up to the next phase of your career, apply today!
Deadline 17th Feb at 6pm
Grand Plan
Grand Plan is a fund run by creatives, for creatives. The founders have either observed or experienced the sustained and structural barriers which contribute to an under-representation of artists and creative people of colour in British arts & culture. They offer three £1000 grants per month to creative people of colour based in the UK who want to make a new cultural project happen.
Deadline 31st January.
🔗 Find out more and apply here…
Mobo Help Musicians’ Fund
The MOBO Help Musicians Fund can provide financial support to musicians making Hip Hop, Grime, R&B, Soul, music of African origin, Reggae, Jazz and Gospel, helping them create music, develop business skills and take their career to the next level.
Music creators can apply for financial support of up to £3,000 towards recording and releasing music.
As well as the above, supported artists will also receive a health consultation from a BAPAM specialist to talk through and address any issues.
Get instruments for your project from Music for All
Music for All invites groups in need of electric guitars (no amplifiers included) and/or ukuleles to apply for some very special instruments.
The charity also has up to 20 special Behringer MS-1 analogue synthesisers to award to deserving projects.
In addition, up to three awards of £2000 are available for projects to benefit those with neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
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Nov 10 2021 
Music funding opportunities for November
November Funding Opportunities
For any music creator, knowing where and how to look for financial support for your projects is invaluable.
For any music creator, knowing where and how to look for financial support for your projects is invaluable. We update this page monthly with the latest opportunities and deadlines for creative grants that will help you on your musical journey.
Here’s what caught our eye in November.
Get funding application guidance from Help Musicians
Support is always available from Help Musicians and you don’t need to worry about deadlines, or funding rounds. They run ‘Get Set’ online sessions will guide you through the types of activities for which you can receive support, the application process, common mistakes and top tips, equipping you to write the best possible application.
The next one is on December 9th.
Mobo Help Musicians’ Fund
The MOBO Help Musicians Fund can provide financial support to musicians making Hip Hop, Grime, R&B, Soul, music of African origin, Reggae, Jazz and Gospel, helping them create music, develop business skills and take their career to the next level.
Music creators can apply for financial support of up to £3,000 towards recording and releasing music.
As well as the above, supported artists will also receive a health consultation from a BAPAM specialist to talk through and address any issues.
Grand Plan – a new charity
Grand Plan is a fund run by creatives, for creatives. The founders have either observed or experienced the sustained and structural barriers which contribute to an under-representation of artists and creative people of colour in British arts & culture. They offer three £1000 grants per month to creative people of colour based in the UK who want to make a new cultural project happen.
🔗 Find out more and apply here…
The Arts Council England
The Arts Council England has announced that its Developing your Creative Practice programme is open for applications. Grants of up to £10,000 are available to support the development of independent creative practioners working in dance, theatre, music, visual arts, literature, combined arts or museums practice.
The application deadline is midnight on 7 December 2021.
PPL Momentum Music Fund
The PPL Momentum Music Fund offers grants of £5k-£15k for UK based artists/bands to break through to the next level of their careers. Activities eligible for support include recording, touring and marketing.
Awards for Young Musicians
The biggest obstacle for many talented young musicians is a simple lack of money. They have the talent, they have the drive, but developing their musical potential can be an expensive endeavour. AYM offers up to £100,000 in grants each year to exceptional young musicians whose families are on a lower income. Their key criteria are musical talent and financial need, meaning whatever genre the musician plays, they can prove their eligibility without having to have taken formal exams.
Musicians can apply anytime after their 5th birthday and before their 18th birthday.
Win a Scholarship from Yamaha Music Europe Foundation
As one of the world’s largest manufacturers of musical instruments, Yamaha believes passionately in musical education. Since 1990, the Yamaha Foundation has granted scholarships to over 1000 young musicians across 33 European countries. The scholarships are granted annually and are aimed at students who are preparing for a professional musical career at a recognized educational institution within Europe. You must be 25 years of age or younger at the time the annual grant is awarded (usually February/March).
The scholarship takes the form of a one-time payment of between €1000.00 and €2000.00. Applications must have been received by the deadline of November 30, 2021.
The British Council
The British Council’s Music team works with over 100 countries to connect British musicians, educators and industry people with their counterparts and audiences around the world, providing opportunities to share knowledge and experience different cultures.
Here you’ll find the latest UK music opportunities and UK music funding resources from the British Council and beyond.
Click here for various funding opportunities
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Oct 13 2021 
October funding opportunities
Opportunities + Events
For any music creator, knowing where and how to look for financial support for your projects is invaluable.
We’ll be updating this page on a monthly basis with the latest opportunities (and deadlines) for creative grants that will help you on your musical journey.
The PRS Foundation Open Fund for Music Creators
In these unprecedented times, it’s challenging for creators to establish and sustain a music career. The Fund offers music grants of up to £5,000 to make their ideas happen. You can get support for:
- Creation of new music
- Music Creator fee (to cover your time and work)
- Touring and live performances
- Recording and release
- Creative residency costs
- Fees to creative collaborators
- Promotion and marketing (when there is also an element of creation and/or performance)
Deadline: Monday 18 October 2021.
Meet the Making Music 2021 Young artists
The Philip and Dorothy Green Young Artists (PDGYA) awards have helped kick start the careers of artists including Steven Isserlis, Elizabeth Watts and Craig Ogden, by providing up-and-coming classical musicians with opportunities to be booked for performances with Making Music’s 3,600+ group members.
Drake Yolanda Award
The deadline is looming for the Drake YolanDa Award, a funding scheme for emerging artists headed up by entrepreneur/philanthropist James JP Drake and saxophonist/broadcaster YolanDa Brown.
The scheme seeks to provide funding to independent artists to help them with upcoming projects that will develop their careers, which might include recording new music or videos, touring activity, a branding or marketing project, or purchasing new equipment. Ten musicians will receive £3000 each, with another ten getting £500. Applicants are encouraged from all genres.
Music for All
Music for All supports every type of music maker from community groups and schools, to experienced musicians and aspirational individuals picking up an instrument for the first time. They have now opened a new round of funding for applications from community projects. The closing date for this round of award applications will be 29 October.
Help Musicians
Have you heard of the ‘Do it Differently Fund, the MOBO fund, the Transmission Fund and the Fusion Fund?
Find out about these and more funding opportunities on this page by Help Musicians, a very helpful resource, updated regularly.
The British Council
The British Council’s Music team works with over 100 countries to connect British musicians, educators and industry people with their counterparts and audiences around the world, providing opportunities to share knowledge and experience different cultures.
Here you’ll find the latest UK music opportunities and UK music funding resources from the British Council and beyond.
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Jun 28 2021 
July | Opportunities, Events + Good Reads
A July Round-up from Take it away
It’s officially summer! The new season has brought a fresh batch of creativity and things to look forward to. Looking for some summer holiday music activities? Check out our post on DIY musical instruments which includes how to make carrot recorders and more! 🥕
From opportunities and events to good reads and inspiration, there are many musical things happening this month. Here is a round-up of some of the things we’ve had our eyes on recently and have enjoyed reading, watching, and listening to…
Opportunities + Events
Get involved in the UK’s biggest ever Thank You Party!
After a hard 18 months, we’ve all got someone to say thank you to. Whether it’s the frontline staff, the delivery driver, conductors for navigating zoom rehearsals, bus drivers, or friends and neighbours – Making Music want to get together to say thanks to them all! This initiative is taking place on Sunday 4th July and it’s very light touch if your singing, playing or organising skills are a bit rusty after 18 months! Read on to find out more from the organisers.
🔗 Find out how to get involved…
Music in Manchester – New Exhibition
This special exhibition at the Science and Industry Museum tells the story of Factory Records’ formative years from 1978-1982, and how their innovative work in music, technology and design gave Manchester an authentic voice and distinctive identity.
BBC Open Training
Do you know someone interested in music, presenting, radio production, event production, sound recording or engineering?
BBC Open are offering hands-on experience, masterclasses and mentoring to develop skills, your voice and your ideas with Open Music.
All whilst getting the chance to work with the BBC Concert Orchestra, BBC Proms & other BBC teams in building, shaping, delivering (and possibly performing in!) a BBC Prom in 2022.
🔗 Find out more and apply here…
Music Engineering + DJ’ing courses
Are you between 16 and 24 and want to learn how to use a music studio and logic… and get a qualification too? Tutor Hub has started running some FREE courses. More info on their Instagram page: instagram.com/tutorhubltd
Join the NYO Community
Celebrate the return to live music as part of the world’s greatest orchestra of teenagers!
NYO are recruiting musicians to be part of a dynamic community of young people who are passionate about orchestral music, and who want to open up this music to their generation. In 2022, there are places for 1,000 teenage musicians to be part of the NYO orchestral community, in NYO and NYO Inspire – this is your opportunity to join in.
Youth Music NextGen Fund
The Youth Music NextGen Fund offers young creatives grants of up to £2,500 to make their ideas happen.
Built for creatives with a stack of ideas but a lack of finance, the fund is open to 18–25-year-olds (and under-30s who identify as Disabled). Successful applicants will use the money to launch a creative project, idea or business. YM want to support the future of the music industries. Singers, Rappers, Songwriters, Producers, DJs, A&Rs, Managers and Agents, right through to roles that have yet to be defined.
Deadline: Friday 9 July 2021.
Music scenes celebrated with ‘digital museum’
Bristol and Bath’s music scenes are being highlighted in a new location-based virtual tour with over 250 venues, studios and inspirational places are featured in a “digital museum”. The website, called Everything is Music, features interviews with artists, producers and historical venue information and you can use your phones to get the content in specific locations.
Music Museums in the UK
With the school holidays just around the corner, we looked into some music-based activities to inspire, amaze and motivate young musicians. Introducing the magical world of music museums!
All over the UK, there are buildings full of the history of local and global music-making. From self-playing instruments, a piano with six pedals to Bob Dylan’s guitar and Elgar’s gramophone, there’s a lot to discover.
Good reads + news
Watch 🎥 Future Sound Digital
Future Sound Digital is a series of free, short videos which will help you start your songwriting journey. The video tutorials give you a simple, engaging and accessible insight into how different artists express themselves through music; how they write songs; and how they became musicians.
The video tutorials feature talented artists Oscar Jerome, Sans Soucis and Arji Manuelpillai. They give tips, insights and advice on lyric-writing, composition and self-expression through music. Plus they offer inspiration for young people who aspire to connect with a career in the music industry.
Learning by Livestream?
Watching YouTube videos has been a popular way to pick up some new skills over the past decade, but livestreaming platforms such as Twitch have started to gain popularity with their real-time interactions.
This year, Liam Taylor became a Steinberg Certified Trainer and has gained recognition for his Cubase tutorial type livestream sessions. We caught up with Liam to learn more about his approach to learning how to produce music and get some advice for anyone looking to get started in this side of music-making.
🔗 Read on…
Accessible Reopening Checklist
Accessibility charity Attitude is Everything has published a 10-point Accessible Reopening Checklist in a bid to ensure deaf, disabled and neurodivergent fans are made welcome when full-capacity events resume.
“It’s free and easy to use, so there’s no reason for promoters, venue managers and event organisers not to embrace and implement this checklist,” said Attitude is Everything founder Suzanne Bull. “Deaf and disabled people are artists, employees, volunteers and fans, and they’re looking forward to returning to an inclusive world of sports, arts and culture. You’d better get ready.”
Why music is the heartbeat of gaming
“Music is a fundamental part of every game, but one particular genre goes further, making its soundtrack an essential part of the action. In music games, a player’s movements are bound to the score: you might reshape the songs with your actions, or be challenged to react to every riff, beat and snare.” Interesting article on the FT covering how music’s role in the world of gaming.
🔗 Read on…
What can classical musicians learn from jazz gigs?
Violinist Nicola Benedetti spoke to Classic FM about rejecting the “sewed up and perfect” ideal of what a classical concert should be, and why the live music experience should offer more than just a live version of a recording.
🔗 Read on…
UK pop pilgrimages: from Paul McCartney’s Kintyre to Giggs’s Peckham
With festivals looking thin on the ground, why not visit the places that have inspired some of our best songs and greatest bands. The Guardian have done a round-up including artists ranging from Pulp to Giggs!
🔗 Read on…
Listen 🎧
If you’ve not already discovered NPR Tiny Desk Concerts we highly recommend starting with the dulcet tones of Jordan Rakei!Aviemore composer Sonia Allori has not let deafness stop her from making music
“What’s missing is a clear pathway for young, deaf and disabled musicians coming through school and thinking ‘what’s next?’, ‘how can I make it in music?’. Great article featuring Take it away friend Sonia Allori!
🔗 Read on…
